Transferring knitted webs.



L N. D. WILLIAMS. TRANSFERRING KNITTED WEBS.

Patented Feb. 2. 191

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mp aw LQUIS N. D. WILLIAMS, OF 0 30? GFFIQE.

: p BYLVANIA.

/ THANSFERRING KNlfi'illil,

Application filed August 6, 1813. z-eflriz To all whom it mac concern:

lie it known t .at I, LOUIS N. D. WIL- Ltum, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing in ()gontz, Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, haveinvented certain Improvements in Transferring Knitted Webs, of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to the transfer of a knitted web from the needleson which it was produced to transfer points or quills (hereinafter, forconvenience, termed quills) whereby the web can be applied to the pointsof a looping machine, or where by the stitches may be transferred fromone half of the quills to the other half of the same so as to double thestitches on each of the latter half before transferring them to thepoints of a looping machine to be united by a course of stitches, orwhereby the double stitches can be united while upon the quills withoutbeing transferred to the points of a looping machine.

The object of my invention to so effect the transfer of the web from theknitting needles to the transfer quills as to insure proper registry ofeach of the ipiillsfl'with its c:-rresporuling stitch of the web, and topre vent undue strain upon the stitches which are thus transferred,thereby, in case of webs of line gage knitted \lLll light yarn.ayoidiiug the possibility of nature of any .rf'thc stitches oro'i'orstruining of the same which willimpair the intcg'rit f the jointor seam subsequently formed by uniting the double stitches. This objectI attain by applying the transfer qiiills to stitches of the webpreceding those last formed upon the needles. whereby the full stitchopening is available for the reception of the transfer quills, whereas,if the quills were applied to the stitches upon the needles not onlywould the entrance of the quill into the stitch be more ditlicult toeilect but the-stitch would have to be stretched so as to receive boththe needle and quill. which abnormal stretching and straining of thestitch is, in many cases, not pennissible.

In the accompanying clrawings Figure 1 is a sectional view of sufficientof a knitting machine to illustrate one method of carrying out my involion; Figs. 2 and 2 are views illustrating other means for effectingthe'desircd result; Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on the line a(z. Fig.2; Fig. 4 is a view 01 rrpieco of fabric after the same has beenSpecification of Letters Q ntented Feb. 2, 1915.

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sin w ith Whi is "we t transfer quills a knitted '1 the needles of akniteb Pjtkld! i ting machine the customary practice has been to applysoul quills directly to the upper portion; of the needles and then tocast the stitche; a mm the needles onto the quills. but this Wi 10? isobjectionable, especially in the ca tx-losily knitted fabrics of finegage. lie-range the stitclws fit so snugly to the needle stems that meproper entry of the transfer quills into the stitches is not easy ofacot=iqilislii1ient, and because when they do enter the stitches thepresence of both a die and a .quill at the same time in ea :h $5. -hSt-lRQS to unduly expand the stitches. especially when the latter are bevil orer the closed latches of the i c stitches being thereby subjectedin us to materially weaken the in some cases, to fracture the 511m of"wh :h they are composed. In car! iug out my .nvention, therefore, Iapply t e transfer quills to stitches of the web pre- "ng th last formedupon the needles,

full area of each stitch is avail- "or flu re eption of the transferquill and the entrance of each quill into its appropriate st tch can beeffected more readily and with greater certainty than when the quill isapplied to a stitch which is also in engagement with a needle, theengagement of the stitches with the quills, moreover, being effectedwithout stretching the same and therefore without any liability tofracture any stitches or impart excessive strain thereto.

Different means may be employed for carrying out my invention, and inthe drawingz l have shown two of such means as examples. but other andequivalent means may be devised for the purpose by those skilled in theart.

in Figs. 1 and Q, l rcm'escnts part of the needl. cylinder of anordinary circular knitting machine. and 2 part of the cam cylinder orring surrmmding the same. It should be understood. however. thatalthough my invention has been designed especially for use in connectionwith circular machines its {also what limited thereto, since it can beadapted in effecting transfer of webs from straight or flat bed machinesas well.

One of the needles of the machine is represented at 3, such needlebeing, during the knitting operation, reciprocatedin the grooved face ofthe cylinder by the usual cams of the cam cylinder 2, which should alsobe provided with,mans for raising all of the needles to the clearingpoint, as shown in Fig. 1. when the transfer is to be effected. theneedles being then retracted so as to cast their stitches after theengagement of the transfer quills with the stitches of a precedingcourse, or the stitches upon the needles being released therefrom byother means, such for instance, as the stitch-severing knife shown in myapplication for patent Serial No- 774,594, filed June 19, 1913.

The quills 4 of the transfer ring are disposed in a circle-having thesame diameter as the circle of needles of the knitting machine when thelatter are in their normal or knitting position, that is to say, with.the backsof the needle stems in contact with the bases of the grooves inthe needle cylinder, but in order to bring the stitches of a previouslyformed course into registry with the transferquillsthe knittin needles 3are projected in the grooves of the cylinder, as shown in Fig. 1, so asto draw the upper edge of the knitted, web outwardly over the top of thecylinder and thereby bring the stitches of a previously formed courseinto registry with thegrooves in the needle cylinder so that the pointsof the transfer quills can pass through said stitches and into thegrooves, as shown in Fi 1. Various means may be adopted for e ect- "ihgsuch projection of the needles 3 in the grooves" in thecylinder. In'thepresent instance I have shown for this purpose a reciprocating'jack 5,disposed behind-the needle. 3 and having, at the lower end, a butt 6which is acted upon by a special'cam in the cylinder 2 so as to raiseand lower said "jack, as required, the upper end of the jack having abutt 7 which, during the knitting operation, is contained in a recess 7in the cylinderl, the jack being then inits lower- 'most or retractedposition. When it is de sired to project the needle the jack 5 is raisedand the upper end of the butt 7 engages with the inclined top 7 of therecess 7 the effect being to thrust the upper end of the jack outwardlyand therefore to impart corresponding outward movement to the shank ofthe needle, needles to assume the outwardly inclined position shown inFig. 1 and thus draw the .upper "edge of the knitted web outwardly overthe top of the'cylinder.

Fig.2 of the .drawing illustrates means a portion of the web therebycausing the for carrying out my invention without displacement of theneedles. In this case quills 8 are inserted in the upper end of the clinder immediately behind each of the needle guiding grooves therein,the back of. each of these quills being, by preference, flush with thebase of the groove, and said quills being disposed in a relation thereverse 05 that of the transfer quills 4, as shown in Fig. 3, saidquills 8 providing spaces for, the reception of the ends of the transferquills 4 after the latter have been passed through the stitches of acourse of the web preceding that upon the needles, as shown.

in Fig. 2.

In carrying out my invention the transfer quills will usually engage thecourse of stitches immediately preceding that upon the needles, as shownin Figs. 1 to 4, but in some cases it may be advisable to permit to hangupon the needles so as to provide the equivalent of a setting-up courseon the needles and permit immediate resumption of the knittinfg of a newweb upon the latter without ee'din the first course of yarn for said newwe to naked needles. In such case I enga e the transfer quills with acourse of t e knitted web considerably in advance of the course upon theneedles, as shown for instance, in Fig. 5, in which 9 represents thetransfer course and 10 the course upon the needles, there being betweenthese two courses a plurality of intervening courses (four in thepresent instance) numbered re-- this course serving as a guide for thecutting instrument whereby the severing of the webs is effected.

When reciprocating web holders are used in connection with the needlecylinder of the machine as is now the customary practice the needlesmay. while the web holders are retracted, be projected so as to raisethe stitches above the level of the tops of the web holders and thelatter may then be projected so as to support the web while the transferquills engage the stitches of a course previous to that last formed uponthe needles, as shown for instance in Fig. 2.

I claim:

1. The mode herein described of effecting the transfer of a knitted webfrom the needles upon which it was produced to the quills of'a transferdevice, said mode consisting in engaging said quills with the stitchesof a course I formed upon the needles, which sah last preceding thatlast fdrmed course still remains upon the needles, and then freeing saidengaged course from connection with the needles.

2. The mode herein described of effecting the transfer of a knitted webfrom the needles upon which it was produced to the quills of a transferdevice, said mode consisting in engaging said quills with the stitchesof a course preceding that last foamed upon the needles, while said lastformed course still remains upon the needles, and'then, freeing saidengaged course from connectien j-with the needles and leaving one ormore courses of stitches still in connec- -tion with said needles.

3. The mode herein described cf efiecting the transfer of a knitted webfrom the needles upon which it was produced to' the quills of a transferdevice said mode consisting in engaging the transfer quills with thestitches of a course preceding that last formed upon the needles, whilesaid previousl formed course of stitches is supporte by the needlecarrier and while the last formed course still remains upon the needles,and then freeing said previous course from connection with the needles.

in testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, inthe presence of two snhscrihin Witnesses.

LO JIS N. D. \VILLIAMS. Witnesses KATE A. BEADLE, HAMILTON D. TURNER.

